7 Outdated Sales Closing Tactics That Are Flat Out Terrible

It‘s a situation every salesperson has experienced. You‘re on a call with a promising prospect, things seem to be going well, but then they ask a challenging question or express some hesitation. Suddenly, the positive momentum grinds to a halt. The deal that seemed like a sure thing just moments ago now hangs in the balance.

What do you do? For too many salespeople, the answer is to reach into their arsenal of closing techniques and pressure the buyer into saying yes. They‘ll use tactics like the "sharp angle close" — dodging the prospect‘s question and trying to force a commitment.

"If our product did have that feature you asked about, would you sign the contract today?"

This approach may have been effective back when salespeople held all the power in the buying process. But in an era of highly informed buyers with virtually endless options, playing hardball is more likely to alienate prospects than close deals.

In fact, a recent survey by Salesforce found that 75% of buyers say they won‘t make a purchase if they feel pressured by a salesperson. That‘s why it‘s time for sales organizations to finally ditch these outdated, customer-unfriendly closing tactics once and for all.

Let‘s take a closer look at some of the worst offenders and explore a more modern, effective approach to closing deals.

The Sharp Angle Close

As noted in the opening example, the sharp angle close involves responding to a prospect‘s question or objection by pressuring them to commit, rather than addressing their actual concern.

Salesperson: …So in summary, our software offers a comprehensive suite of productivity tools to streamline your team‘s workflow. What do you think?

Prospect: It definitely sounds interesting. One question though – does your software integrate with the project management tool we use? That would be a key requirement for us.

Salesperson: Well, if our software did integrate seamlessly with your project management tool, would you be ready to move forward with a purchase?

On the surface, the salesperson‘s response may seem clever – an attempt to steer the conversation back to closing. But look at it from the buyer‘s perspective. They asked an important question about a key buying criterion. Instead of getting an answer, they got a question in return, coupled with a demand for commitment. How do you think that feels?

For most prospects, this approach is deeply off-putting. It sends the message that the salesperson cares more about getting a quick "yes" than actually understanding and addressing the buyer‘s needs. It‘s manipulative and disrespectful.

What‘s worse, by dodging important questions, the salesperson sets the stage for major issues down the road. Imagine if the prospect did agree to buy in this scenario, only to later find out that the software doesn‘t actually integrate with their other tools. That‘s a customer relationship that‘s doomed from the start.

"Limited Time" Pressure Tactics

Another common but ill-advised closing tactic is arbitrarily putting pressure on the buyer to commit quickly. Salespeople will say things like:

"This pricing is only available until the end of the month."

"If you don‘t sign the contract this week, I can‘t guarantee we‘ll have capacity to onboard you later."

"My manager is only authorizing discounts for prospects who commit on this initial call."

In reality, these deadlines and conditions are often complete fabrications. The salesperson likely has considerable flexibility on things like pricing and capacity. They just say their hands are tied to try and force the prospect into a snap decision.

The big problem with these "limited time" offers is that they strain credibility. Prospects can often sniff out when they‘re being baited with an artificial deadline. And even if the buyer does believe the ticking clock is real, making a complex purchase under duress rarely leads to good long-term outcomes.

According to Corporate Visions, applying time pressure causes the prospect to be 12% less likely to buy. In other words, pressuring prospects to decide quickly makes them more likely to decide "no."

Commitment Traps

Somewhat related to the sharp angle close, "commitment traps" describes a variety of techniques salespeople use to get the prospect to make small commitments during the sales process. Common examples include:

"If you like what you‘ve seen in the demo so far, I‘ll send over a contract for your review. Sound good?"

"To make sure I‘m not wasting your time, can you confirm you have budget and authority to make this purchase?"

While these queries may seem harmless, they‘re actually an attempt to box the prospect in and restrict their future options. If the buyer agrees to review paperwork or confirms that they‘re a decision-maker, it makes it harder for them to back out or slow things down later without looking inconsistent.

The problem is, truly empowered buyers don‘t like being constrained by a salesperson‘s sneaky commitments. Trying to handcuff prospects with their past responses just breeds resentment and erodes trust.

The Puppy Dog Close

With the "puppy dog close," the salesperson offers to let the prospect try out their product or service for a period of time, betting that they‘ll fall in love with it and won‘t want to give it up when the trial period ends. Just like letting your kids play with a puppy and then saying they have to give it back.

There are a couple of big issues with this approach. First, it‘s a crutch. If a salesperson can‘t articulate the value of their offering well enough to get the buyer to commit without a free trial, that‘s a problem.

Second, it‘s risky. Giving a non-paying prospect free reign of your product with no formal agreement in place is a recipe for scope creep and unreasonable demands. And if the trial period doesn‘t go well, you‘ve burned both time and resources with nothing to show for it.

Salespeople who rely on the puppy dog close are usually trying to compensate for a weak value proposition. Instead of giving away the farm and hoping things work out, they need to get better at understanding the buyer‘s needs and conveying benefits.

The Missing Man Close

In the "missing man" close, a junior salesperson will tell the prospect that they need to get final approval from a manager or executive to grant a discount or special terms. But what do you know? That key decision-maker is conveniently out of the office or unavailable.

"Tell you what – if you commit to buying now, I‘ll do everything I can to get my manager to approve that price you asked for. But I can only go to bat for you if I know you‘re ready to sign today. We have to strike while the iron is hot!"

Beyond just being manipulative, this approach reveals the salesperson‘s true priorities. They‘re not looking to come to a mutually beneficial agreement – they just want to push the deal through at all costs. If getting the buyer a fair price was really the goal, the salesperson would be directing their energy toward the approval process, not pressuring the prospect.

Additionally, this tactic often does nothing but breed frustration on the buyer‘s side. Nobody likes feeling like they‘re being held hostage while a mysterious decision-maker dickers over terms behind the scenes. It‘s the fast track to an adversarial relationship.

The Presumptive Close

Salespeople using the presumptive close take a "yes" for an answer, even when the prospect hasn‘t actually agreed to anything. For instance:

Prospect: This all looks very good. I definitely think there could be an opportunity for us to work together.

Salesperson: Great! To get the ball rolling, I‘ll send over the contract this afternoon and you can return a signed copy at your earliest convenience. I‘ll also get with our onboarding team so we can get a kickoff call scheduled. What works best for you next Tuesday or Wednesday?

The salesperson is "presuming" the prospect has made a buying decision and is trying to skip straight to the logistics of the deal. But an expression of interest and some positive feedback is not a firm commitment to buy.

By putting the cart before the horse, the salesperson creates confusion and puts the prospect in an awkward position of having to halt the runaway train. It‘s one thing to ask for the business, but playing "let‘s pretend" is just silly and counterproductive.

The Apology Close

In probably the most cringe-worthy technique on our list, the apology close involves the salesperson apologizing to the prospect for "bothering" them or "taking up too much of their time."

"On second thought, it‘s probably not worth scheduling another demo for you next week. I‘ve already taken up too much of your time as it is. Why don‘t we just skip it – and if you‘re interested, you can let me know."

This tactic attempts to prey on the human tendency to be polite and reassure people that they‘re not inconveniencing us. Some buyers might even feel guilty about "leading on" the earnest salesperson.

However, any approach that relies on mindgames and guilt trips to get to a "yes" should be banished from the modern salesperson‘s toolkit. Savvy buyers will see right through this ploy and it will likely offend them. Meanwhile, the less assertive prospects who do fall for this are unlikely to turn into great long-term customers.

After all, how much respect and confidence can you really have for a company whose salesperson has to resort to self-flagellation to drum up business?

A Better Way to Close

Aggressive closing tactics like the ones described above are relics of a bygone era of selling. They‘re designed to wrest control from buyers and pressure them into decisions, rather than working collaboratively to find the best solution.

That approach just doesn‘t cut it anymore. Not when the internet has empowered buyers to research their options, compare offers, and make highly informed purchasing decisions all on their own. Forrester Research found that the average B2B prospect is now 57% of the way through their purchase process before ever speaking to a salesperson.

When buyers finally do engage sales reps, they‘re looking for someone who can provide value, not run the sales equivalent of a carnival confidence game. That‘s why modern, effective closing looks very different:

1. Lead with Education – Instead of pushing for an immediate decision, focus on helping prospects make a smart choice. Provide them with relevant information, point them to useful resources, and above all, enable them to feel confident they‘re making the right call by buying from you. HubSpot Research found that 69% of buyers say the most influential aspect of a positive sales experience is a sales rep who "listened to their needs."

2. Gain Incremental Commitments – Rather than trying to get a prospect to go from initial interest to signed contract in one giant leap, break down the process into smaller steps. See if they‘re open to taking a next action like a follow up call or a reference visit. These low-risk intermediate steps help build momentum and make the final buying decision seem less daunting.

3. Focus on Mutual Fit – Instead of looking to close every possible deal at all costs, concentrate on prospects where you know your solution will have a major positive impact. These "ideal customers" are not only more likely to buy, but also more likely to become loyal evangelists for your brand. Be willing to walk away from prospects who just aren‘t a good match.

4. Ask for Feedback – Rather than charging forward and ignoring signs of hesitation, give your prospects explicit opportunities to voice their questions and concerns. Saying things like "What are your thoughts on what we‘ve discussed so far?" or "Do you feel like I‘m properly understanding your key challenges?" invites the buyer into a collaborative problem-solving dialogue.

5. Confirm Shared Commitments – Once you‘ve addressed the prospect‘s questions and built clear value for your solution, outline the specific next steps for both parties. For example: "So it sounds like we‘re in agreement about moving forward. As I understand it, the next steps are for me to send over a formal proposal by Friday and for you to share it with your executive team for review. Then we‘ll reconnect early next week to discuss any feedback. Do I have that right?"

Notice how this approach is focused on ensuring both the prospect and the salesperson are on the same page and have clear responsibilities. That‘s the key to a mutually beneficial close.

The Bottom Line

We‘ve all heard the saying "always be closing." But the data shows this credo is sorely outdated. Salesforce Research found that high-performing sales teams are nearly 3x more likely to view "solving customer problems" as their primary goal, as opposed to simply closing deals.

Unfortunately, too many of the traditional closing techniques still in use are geared more toward wringing a "yes" out of buyers than actually creating value. That‘s a big problem in an era when customers are more empowered, better-educated, and less patient with sales shenanigans than ever before.

It‘s time for sales organizations to consign these manipulative and shortsighted closing tactics to the ash heap of history. The sharp angle close, pressure-filled ultimatums, disingenuous apologies and other "hard sell" approaches just breed mistrust and resentment, damaging relationships and tarnishing reputations.

Instead, the most successful sellers today are ditching the "close at all costs" mentality in favor of a more consultative, buyer-centric approach. They focus on understanding each prospect‘s unique needs, delivering meaningful value, and building the kind of two-way partnerships that drive longterm success for both parties.

Yes, the salesperson still has to ask for the business and bring opportunities to a decisive close. But the key is to view closing as a natural outcome of a sales process based on insight, education, and shared solution-building – not a chance to turn up the heat and back the buyer into a corner.

It‘s a new era in selling. And for aggressive closing techniques like the sharp angle close, it‘s closing time.